Rie Reads

That being said though, the ones I’ve read I’ve greatly enjoyed. Just a quick blip about each and high recommendations for all of them

The Way of Kings and Elantris by Brandon Sanderson

So I read The Way of Kings at the end of last year, but I’m including it on here because it enticed me to read Elantris, also by Brandon Sanderson. Lots of people know Sanderson as the dude who finished The Wheel of Time series, but I could never get past the first few chapters of the first book. This dude knows his stuff. 

The worlds Sanderson creates in The Way of Kings (the first of a loooooong series still being written) and Elantris (a nice stand alone that wraps up most of its loose ends) are absolutely vibrant. The characters and stories are cool, but oh my god the way he builds worlds is amazing. I feel that, as a writer, I have learned so much about world building by reading Sanderson’s book. I’ve got my hands on the Mistborn trilogy, but I’m saving that for vacation.

At the very least, if you’re fond of interesting worlds and cultures, unique magic systems, and well rounded, interesting characters, check out his books. His fantasy is epic.

His Majesty’s Dragon and Throne of Jade by Naomi Novik

Alright. Think Napoleonic Wars AU where dragons are a thing. Not only are they a thing, but they’re an important part of how countries wage war. There you go. That’s the Temeraire series summed up. Do you like historical fiction? Like dragons? This series doesn’t have magic, but it doesn’t need it. The diversity of dragons is awesome and the writing style is one that I’m fond of. Good one to grab from the library or a used book store.

A Natural History of Dragons: A Memoir by Lady Trent, by Marie Brennan

So this was totally an impulse buy in a book store. It paid off. Majorly. I absolutely love reading environmental creative nonfiction. This book reminds me a great deal of Kingdom Under Glass by Jay Kirk, or any of Bernd Heinrich’s books. Both Kirk and Heinrich approach the outside world with reverence and wonder, but through a scientific lens. They share discoveries, but couch them in true tales of adventure.

Mirroring the style of these naturalists, A Natural History of Dragons is the first part of Lady Trent’s life, as told by an elderly Lady Trent. I’m not usually fond of first person, but its so beautifully written, that I couldn’t help but love it. And imagine Maggie Smith as Lady Trent. Seriously. You’ll understand when you read it.

The first three are out. I haven’t seen them in any used book stores yet, but they’re worth having on your shelf to throw at your friends.

Gossamer Axe by Gael Baudino

So I just finished this book tonight. I bought it a week ago. I mean, I kinda found it. I was wandering a used bookstore and it was just sitting out, not shelved properly. Normally, I don’t think it would have caught my attention, but I’d seen the name many times before on good LGBT books to read. It’s out of print, so I’d sort of given up hope of finding it somewhere. When I saw it though, I had to buy it. Let me try summing it up...

It’s urban fantasy, taking place from ‘86-’87. It’s also a tale of the Celts. Fairies exist. So does magic. And Christa is a harper turned hard rock/metal guitarist to try to win back her lover from the hands of the fairies. 

This books was hard to get through. I do want to make a point to stress that. The characters deal with a lot of really deep, heavy stuff. We’re talking about drug abuse and child molestation deep. But its a book about healing and growing and finding family too.

I haven't actually finished any books yet this year. I am woefully behind on my reading lists.

I blame this on my new job. That's right folks, I'm a chemist now (as opposed to a museum educator). How that happened, I'm still not sure, but we'll see how this goes.

I also blame it on trying to do more writing, as that fell by the wayside after NaNoWriMo.

If you like the writing and want to see more, just shoot me a message and let me know. I don't want to put it here unless y'all want to read it.

I think that's all the things I needed to say. With that, I should probably go clean or something adultish like that.

This is part of an art group type thing (I'm so eloquent sometimes it's painful) run by my friend over at honeybeestudio.

Prompt Eleven: Fairy Tales

Bad News Bears

So this is a short story that I've had floating around for about a year. It's part of a collection of short stories that I work on whenever I'm in the mood. The collection itself is called Animal Sanctuary, and I'm sure I'll put more of the stories online at some point.

This particular piece is the only one that really fits the Fairy Tale prompt. It's the first one I wrote and kick started the idea of Animal Sanctuary. As such, it is quite a bit different from others in the mix, as they are in a modern setting.

Anyway, enough of the chit chat. Here's Bad News Bears.

The young prince snuck into the kitchens, hoping to find some tasty morsels left behind after the banquet. He was still bitter about not being invited. After all, he was six years old. His grandfather and father, king and crown prince respectively, had agreed that he was too young. All day he had been tortured by the enticing smells of roasting meats, baking breads and pies, and countless other delicacies. All he had eaten for supper was a bowl of stew from the day before.

A strange shuffling and snuffling froze him in his tracks. A great, shaggy bear head rounded the corner, its nose to the air. The prince bit back a scream and scrambled back as silently as he could. He had heard somewhere that bears had poor vision and hoped desperately that whomever had told him that was right, and that the low light in the kitchen was enough to hide him. He backed into something huge and musky and felt, more than heard the rumbling growl from behind him. This time, he did scream and stumbled forward.

“You’re out of honeycomb and oats,” the second bear told him, smacking its lips. The prince whimpered. “The wine smells of hellebore,” it added with a snort.

The first bear shuffled into the aisle and sat beside the boy. “The meat’s rancid too,” it added with a grumble. It gave the boy a bored sniff and sighed, and shuffled off again. “There’s rust in the good iron pans.”

The boy blinked and swallowed. He tried to say something but only squeaked. He cleared his throat and tried again. “Who are you?” the prince asked, as politely as he could.

The first bear swung its head back into the aisle and blinked. “Why, we’re the Bad News Bears,” it told him matter of factly. “The stone work is crumbling in that corner.”

The prince stood up and brushed himself off. He straightened his tunic before bowing.

“Welcome to our castle,” he said. “I am the prince here.”

The second bear shook its head with a snort. “No, lad. You’re the king.”

Wanna read Le Morte d’Arthur in the form of a rare 1950s school reader edition? ;) Cause I have one you can borrow.

I've got a hardcover copy of Le Morte d'Arthur. I think it's going to take a while for me to get to it, so I don't want to do what I've been doing with people's books, which is borrow them to read, and then they join the pile of To Be Read.

cygnata said: 

I also HIGHLY reccommend you pick up a copy of Bulfinch’s Mythology. Again, I have one you can borrow.

Pardon me, but what the fuck was wrong with me? This book is brilliant. I'm not that far in yet, but I can't stop laughing while I read. And apparently don't notice what's going on around me because I get so wrapped up in reading it. 

PSA: Never reorganize your bookshelves. Ever.

Carmilla: The Return, by Kyle Marffin.

I haven’t read this yet, but my friend lent it to me when I mentioned hearing about the series on Youtube. She really liked it, so I don’t doubt that it’s good.

On a side note, you can find the book on Amazon for something like $0.99. There's another version of the book that my friend lent me but I haven't had a chance to start yet. It's a modern take on the book. Once I find the copy I was lent, I'll share the author.

Edit: Also my friend has a fantastic response to my "WTF even is this show?"

"I don't even know but it's queer and amazing."